1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a flashlight, and more particularly to a flashlight having a manually operatable device to generate electric energy to energize the flashlight and/or to charge batteries of the flashlight.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Typical flashlights comprise one or more batteries received in a housing, and coupled to one or more light bulbs, to energize the light bulbs, and to generate lights, such as flashlights.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,168,288 to Claire discloses one of the typical flashlights which also comprise one or more batteries coupled to one or more light bulbs to energize the light bulbs to generate lights.
Most of the batteries are not chargeable, and should be discarded away after the electric energy of the batteries have been consumed. The other batteries may be re-chargeable, and may thus be used again and again.
However, the typical re-chargeable batteries are normally required to be disengaged from the flashlights, and then engaged into a charging sets, for allowing the flashlights to be charged by various electric power sources, such as the electric power sources of house families, of vehicles, of airplanes, etc.
It may take time to disengaged the batteries from the flashlights, and then engaged the batteries into the charging sets to charge the flashlights, and then engaged the batteries into the flashlights again. It may also take a long time, such as thirty minutes or longer, to charge the batteries with the charging sets. The batteries may not be charged and used right away.
In addition, in outdoors, there will be no electric power sources available, such that the batteries may not be charged outdoors, and such that the flashlights may not be used outdoors when the electric energy of the batteries have been consumed.
The present invention has arisen to mitigate and/or obviate the afore-described disadvantages of the conventional flashlights.